Cooking

Season for cherries in Australia

‘Tis the season for cherries in Australia and you’re going to love this salad recipe!

Nestled on the foothills of Mount Buffalo in the national park, 15 minutes south of Myrtleford, is a cherry orchard of 150 trees. It has suffered prolonged drought, floods, bushfires and snow, but the owners are hopeful of harvesting a couple of tonnes of cherries for this Christmas season.

Melbourne couple from Kew, John and Suzi Rainone, bought the 300-acre parcel of land in the pristine Victorian High Country in January 2005. “Ignorance can be bliss when you buy a farm, or start a new business. Enthusiasm and drive can make up for lack of expertise. We didn’t have any self-inflicted disasters but we pestered the previous owners with our questions. We’re still in contact with the original owners who planted the orchard,” Suzi says. “From the produce my mother makes European-style cherry syrup and I like to bake Black Forest cake and cherry strudel. A sour-cherry chutney is also great on venison or beef fillet.” I’ve always loved combining fruit in my salads, so why not cherries? Give this salad a go! It will have you coming back for more.

Toss spinach, pitted cherries, diced celery, fresh corn kernels and half an onion together. Chicken is optional. To make the cucumber vinaigrette blend half a cucumber, 2 tablespoons of diced onion, juice of one lime and one lemon, a quarter cup of maple syrup, a quarter cup of white vinegar, a third cup of olive oil and salt and pepper to taste.

Perfect for lunch on Christmas Day.

Enjoy your salads! Louise.

Join Louise on a journey through the seasons with salad ingredients, old traditions and popular, exotic or unusual vegetables. From Paddock to Plate founder, author, food writer, radio journalist & yoga teacher.